


It Was Simply Fate

by pinkheichou



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Reincarnation, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Barista Eren Yeager, Bonding, College Student Levi (Shingeki no Kyojin), Love, M/M, Soulmates, True Love, Valentine's Day, established relationship in canonverse
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-14
Updated: 2019-02-14
Packaged: 2019-10-28 09:22:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,361
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17784749
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pinkheichou/pseuds/pinkheichou
Summary: “This band is my promise to you. I promise that I am always with you. No matter how much distance there is between us,I am never letting go of you.”





	It Was Simply Fate

**Author's Note:**

> This is for kaikakaze, djunnsworld, laazyaf, fishnatu, agatha-cris, erentitanchild, emichat08, riv-ren, seikahime, faithful-fanatic, fizzyxox, pandatowrites, aboutereri, liselawliet, levibuns, oekakiuma, bi-chrome, omglevixeren, ageha-sakura, soapy0-0, the-silver-field, xleviiiix, nanamiart, morebeesthanyoucouldimagine, glassesgirl0401, sugarplum-senpai, ackermission, hey-heichou-suz, kakooshi, foureyes48, sexyassheichou, muffinmonster, fluffymusketeer, attraversiamo19, deadgirltryingtosurvive, alienfae, camila-draws-snk, taintedashes, bubbleheichou, the-eren-plush-blog, lankylevi, name-is-katana247, tsukareta-levi, cadet-lea-05, im-eren-jaeger-sexual, wendellthefierce, little-levi-heichou, sofi-yomi, raefill, simsmono, ningyogaaru, 00raito, 19gioia93, shinjekinootp, yuirs, illopii, kurahieiritrjio, dinklebertarts on tumblr 
> 
> and 
> 
> for shinekivi, actualserpex, angemacabre, sudsylilac, hedgedraws, minteajrei, _iloveeren, l.mazeaster, crypticody, ereri_fanfic, ongyo_04, kimjeck, nopapi.i, ackerman.kunn on Instagram.
> 
> For this reincarnation AU one-shot I came up with an own version for the 'red string of fate' and soulmates thing.
> 
> I hope everyone will enjoy this! ^^/

“You know,” Eren said, musing. His feet were swinging simultaneously from left to right. “Living and being together in a relationship in a world like ours has more misfortune than perks.”

Levi was unprepared for something like that coming from Eren; now and ever. But he didn’t disagree with that statement. “I guess so.”

Eren seemed to have caught himself in a moment of aching but immediate sensibility. “Love has no other chance than being fleeting. I can sense it with my own fingers. How it’s slowly fading away with every second that is passing.” He raised a hand to the height of his chest, his fingers crooking and straightening, dancing in the light air.

Levi had never imagined that he would be confronted with such a thing by his own lover. He didn’t know how to retort to it without sounding dumb or rude. Nevertheless, he was willed to say something and tried it with, “If you keep thinking about the cruel future, you can’t enjoy the moment.”

Eren didn’t answer right away. He closed his eyes for a long while, breathing evenly. Once he opened them again, his face mimicked a smile that stole the sun’s show of radiating healthy brightness. Eren must have taken Levi’s words seriously and was apparently acting according to it already.  _Enjoying the moment._

“You’re right. And that’s why,” He patted the empty seat next to him. Eren was sat down on a toppled over tree trunk..

Levi followed Eren’s invitation without questions, sitting down, his 3DMG gear creaking lightly. His team had announced a lunch break ten minutes ago, and Eren and Levi had discreetly distanced themselves from the others to have some alone time. Their mission about the railway to the sea would never leave the back of their minds, though.

A few seconds into sitting down and Levi turned his head to Eren. Eren was already beaming at him. He continued where he left off, enthusiastically. “That’s why I have something for us; something to not let us forget that we – as an ‘us’ – existed, no matter what the future holds.”

One of Eren’s hands reached into his jacket pocket and pulled back from it as a closed fist. He didn’t make a secret out of whatever it was that he was holding in his hand because soon enough he uncurled his fingers, the item in his palm displayed in an unadulterated way for Levi to look at.

Levi’s heart skipped a beat at the sight of two bronze-coloured rings being released from Eren’s grasp. A goosebump shivered over his skin.

Eren smiled to himself pitifully. “Since I don’t have much money, I could only purchase rings made out of wood.”

"Eren—Eren, you didn’t have to…” Levi stuttered.

“Yes, I had to.”

Levi felt like being thrown into the heaving ocean while being asleep, engulfed and swallowed by the surging waves, and it showed on his face—in his expression. The bafflement was genuine. He hadn’t expected that Eren would be  _that kind_  of a romantic. Had never considered it.

Eren seemed to take gradually notice of Levi’s perplexity. His soothing expression and dismissing gesture seemed to abate Levi’s timidity. And then he added with words, “Oh, no, don’t worry. This isn’t going to be a proposal.”

“Okay.” Levi said meekly, his panic ebbing away.

“This is going to be something way greater.”

“ _Okay._ ” And the panic was back again.

Unperturbed by Levi’s restlessness, Eren now took one of the rings in his hand and guided it towards Levi’s right ring finger as his other hand held the digit up. Eren watched how the ring was slipping onto that finger, looking overly content, almost dazed with bliss. “One time, Armin told me a story about fate and soulmates. I don’t know if that tale is true or not, but in the end it doesn’t matter to me if it isn’t.  _I_  think that we are soulmates. And that’s why,” He got a proper hold of the other ring and decorated his own right ring finger with it. “That’s what these rings are for. The sign of our bonding. And because we might not always be able to see each other and the ring on our fingers, I have this.” Eren grabbed into his jacket pocket a second time.

Levi was speechless. He wondered whether all of this was part of an odd, realistic dream. But it wasn’t. He never had such vivid dreams that didn’t revolve around deaths and war and lost comrades. The times he didn’t have nightmares, his dreams would always be hazy and abstract.

He registered a bit later that Eren was connecting the rings to a red band.

“We can wear this around our rings only now, only once, but that’s why you should never forget what I am about to say. This band here,” He raised his hand that wore the ring with the red knot tied to it. “This band is my promise to you. I promise that I am always with you. No matter how much distance there is between us,  _I am never letting go of you._ ”

It was hard for Levi to swallow. His throat was a drought.

He was obviously overwhelmed by Eren’s act of proclaiming both of them as 'soulmates’, but Levi appreciated his efforts nonetheless.

He would need his time to let it sink in, but for now he was at least able to produce a nod. Eren was smiling again—a blissful smile for the moment, a lasting memory for the cruel future.

As if fate had planned to maneuver their lives from then on, it was not much later that Eren and Levi were forced to drift apart.

Levi died in a fight, Eren perished a year later.

~~~

“Damn it.” Kenny Ackerman muttered lowly, his words being audible only for the adult behind him but not for the little kid trudging behind the second adult. “We’ll be too late.” He was walking under an umrella with long and heavy steps. The rain was pouring down copiously. Actually, it was a dark storm that had draped over the city.

“We still have some time left. If we keep it up like this, we’ll arrive in time.” His sister Kuchel said behind him, less agitated than her brother. She swayed her head back to shoot a glance at her son. He was wearing a rain coat, shorts and rubber boots, holding a tiny umbrella. His small steps were plashing on the unpaved pathway through the park. Kuchel asked worriedly, “Are you all right?”

The little boy nodded.

“And you aren’t scared of the thunder, are you?”

The kid shook his head no. He wasn’t scared, when his mother was by his side.

“That’s my boy.” She faced forward again and didn’t cease her rapid steps. The kid was grateful for his mother holding his hand, else he would have probably tripped and fallen down during his attempts at keeping up with both their paces.

Under the protection of his umbrella, despite the hurry with which the two adults were marching, he allowed himself to have a look around the park.

Suddenly he animated for his mother to stop in her tracks. “Wait! There! On the playground!” His infantile voice ceased before a thunder roared.

“Levi!” Kenny abruptly turned to his nephew, glowering at him impatiently. “Now is not the right time to play on the playground! Your mother and I are late for an appointment and, in case you didn’t notice yet, it’s  _pissing rain_  outside!”

“Kenny.” Kuchel chastised her brother for the choice of words he had used.

“But uncle Kenny!” Levi stomped with one foot, stubbornly, sprinkles of water flying around his boots. “There is a kid on the playground! All alone!” He pointed at the place to his right.

There, on the wet sand was a little kid — most likely a boy – cowering, the hood of his rain coat thrown over his head, hands above it. Tightly gripping it.

“He’s right.” Kuchel said more to herself than to Kenny.

“We have to help him. He’s probably scared of the thunder.” Levi said, almost in a whimper.

Kenny growled grumpily. “No, we don’t have to. Look. It seems that his parents have found him.” And it was true. Two adults with umbrellas approached the child, enclosing the  – so to speak – ball of anxiety in an embrace. The kid appeared to have overcome some of his fear now that his parents were there, and he embraced them back.

“Great. Beautiful.  _Very sweet._ ” Kenny cooed in a sarcastic tone. “Can we  _go_  now?” He deliberately glared at his nephew for approval.

“Come.” Kuchel picked her son up and carried him for the rest of the way. Like that, they were faster anyway.

Levi took that opportunity to witness how the boy was walking away from the playground with an umbrella hovering above him, holding his parents’ hands.

At that time Levi didn’t know just how close he had been to Eren. To  _his Eren._

~~~

The next time they met – and even saw each other from face to face! – was on Valentine’s day.

When Levi coincidentally met his lover from his first life, he was damn certain that the universe had slapped him across the face right at that very moment. And while he was recovering from that mental hit (even covering the spot on his cheek that he was so sure of having been punched on), he tried to think of a way to thank the universe.

Levi had been catapulted out of existence. At least that was what it felt like to him.

He had been standing in a queue in that coffee shop, that was opened only recently, to treat himself a tea for his uni lunch break, all the time not knowing who it was that would take his order until it was his turn and he was met with the cashier that was no one else than Eren Yeager.  _His Eren!_

Eren was just as perplexed, was hit by the universe just the same way. Naturally, he couldn’t believe his eyes at first—same for Levi. They stared at each other for a long time, eyes wide, mouths gaping, breath taken away.

Eren looked around the same age as that time when he and Levi had become a couple in their previous lives. Levi wasn’t much older than him in this life and since Levi had looked younger than he actually had been in his past life, it wasn’t hard for Eren to recognise him.

“Levi…” Eren was the first one to speak. His voice was hoarse and ghostly.

“Eren…” Levi’s one sounded even more pathetic.

“Eren!” Eren’s manager seemed to have come to the counter from the staff room to check up on his employee’s works.

Eren startled free from his freeze, lost at first, until he understood that he was at work, behind the counter, taking orders,  _meeting his past lover in another life._

“W-What would you like to order?” Eren croaked out. Even if that had been the right question for him as the cashier, it was totally not what he wanted to say to Levi right now!

“You.” was the only thing Levi could think of.  _I want you._

Eren was relieved that Levi was as bewildered as him, but since the others in the queue were starting to complain, he hastily ordered a Chai Latte for Levi. “I have a break in 10 minutes. Can you wait until then, please?”

“Of course.” Levi said, as if hypnotised, his body moving mechanically aside to let the next customer order. His mind was shut down, he was breathing hard, his muscles were tensing with strain that was induced by his little shock. 

Eren was here. Eren was real!

All Levi was able to do in the next 10 minutes was taking his Latte and placing it on the bench outside, in front of the shop. He couldn’t take a sip to taste, the only thing his quivering hands would be able to manage was dropping the drink before the straw could come close to his lips.

When, finally, Eren came outside, Levi did spill his untouched drink by standing up too hastily. But he didn’t care.

Eren immediately found and ran towards him and they both crushed into an affectionate hug. Eren snivelling happily, calling Levi’s name over and over again while Levi was hugging Eren tighter and tighter, mouthing Eren’s name shakily.

They needed more than half of the time of Eren’s break to actually realise that they were reunited. Here. Today. In another world. In another life.

They were sitting on the bench, still folded in an embrace, but they could see the other’s face. Levi’s eyes were glistening wetly as he stroke Eren’s tanned cheek and his wild locks. “You’re here. With me. It’s really you.” It would take Levi a day and a night until he could go back to his usual self and approach his lover with more sense.

“I love you.” Eren, just as clouded as Levi, said the first thing out loud that his mind and lips formed.

“I love you too.” Levi kissed him and Eren reciprocated the kiss. They sat there, kissing each other intimately for quite some time. Neither of them could think of a way to tell the other how they were feeling right now.

“I’m sorry.” Eren said once they broke the kiss. “I’m sorry. I don’t have any rings with me. Like last time, you know.”

“It’s okay. It’s totally fine.” Levi said quickly, pecking Eren’s lips over and over again. “I will buy some rings this time. And you can say the same things again. You know… Not letting go and so on.”

“I’m never letting go of you.”

“And you kept your promise.” Levi’s voice got weaker. Too many emotions were overflooding him.

“Yes.” Eren said, and kissed Levi again. “I’m never letting go of you. It doesn’t matter in which life and it doesn’t matter how many more lives we will live. We’ll always find each other. Because I was right.  _We are soulmates, Levi._ ”

**Author's Note:**

> Feel free to leave a comment!!


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